Clearbridge Investments LLC Sells 82,545 Shares of Itaú Unibanco Holding S.A. (NYSE:ITUB)

Clearbridge Investments LLC decreased its holdings in Itaú Unibanco Holding S.A. (NYSE:ITUB - Free Report) by 21.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 301,619 shares of the bank's stock after selling 82,545 shares during the quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC's holdings in Itaú Unibanco were worth $1,496,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC bought a new stake in Itaú Unibanco in the third quarter valued at $1,215,000. State Street Corp increased its position in shares of Itaú Unibanco by 7.4% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 12,522,486 shares of the bank's stock worth $83,899,000 after purchasing an additional 861,500 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its holdings in Itaú Unibanco by 5.4% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 50,829,515 shares of the bank's stock valued at $338,016,000 after purchasing an additional 2,604,304 shares during the last quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC grew its stake in Itaú Unibanco by 23.2% during the third quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 25,586 shares of the bank's stock worth $169,000 after buying an additional 4,823 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Itaú Unibanco by 1.3% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 27,899,587 shares of the bank's stock worth $174,930,000 after buying an additional 346,390 shares in the last quarter.

Itaú Unibanco Trading Down 0.7 %

ITUB traded down $0.04 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $5.27. The stock had a trading volume of 14,655,800 shares, compared to its average volume of 26,278,883. The stock has a market capitalization of $56.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.75, a P/E/G ratio of 0.89 and a beta of 0.65. Itaú Unibanco Holding S.A. has a 52 week low of $4.42 and a 52 week high of $6.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.32, a quick ratio of 1.75 and a current ratio of 1.34. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $5.35 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $5.27.

Itaú Unibanco (NYSE:ITUB - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The bank reported $0.17 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.18 by ($0.01). Itaú Unibanco had a return on equity of 19.46% and a net margin of 12.25%. On average, equities analysts predict that Itaú Unibanco Holding S.A. will post 0.8 EPS for the current year.

Itaú Unibanco Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 19th were issued a $0.0527 dividend. This is a positive change from Itaú Unibanco's previous dividend of $0.00. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 19th. Itaú Unibanco's dividend payout ratio is currently 2.82%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on ITUB shares. Hsbc Global Res upgraded Itaú Unibanco to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, January 13th. HSBC upgraded Itaú Unibanco from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $6.18 target price for the company in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Finally, UBS Group raised shares of Itaú Unibanco from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Itaú Unibanco has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $6.27.

Itaú Unibanco Profile

Itaú Unibanco Holding SA offers a range of financial products and services to individuals and corporate customers in Brazil and internationally. The company operates through three segments: Retail Banking, Wholesale Banking, and Activities with the Market + Corporation. It offers current account; loans; credit and debit cards; investment and commercial banking services; real estate lending services; financing and investment services; economic, financial and brokerage advisory; and leasing and foreign exchange services.